Forecast

Giving Fund: Help needed to find and keep a home for the holidays

Julia and her three young children are struggling to get back on their feet after a cancer diagnosis rocked their family this year.

Her 10-year-old child has been diagnosed with cancer and just finished a round of treatment.

But the situation left Julia unable to work for the past two months while her child underwent a series of surgeries and treatments at a medical facility more than three hours away, forcing her other children to stay with extended family during that time.

The whole family is finally back together and Julia is searching for a part-time job to help pay for her child’s ongoing medical expenses.

A gift of $1,500 would help Julia catch up on her mortgage and car payments.

The News-Times partners each holiday season with United Way of Western Connecticut to help raise money for families like Julia’s through the The Giving Fund.

The organization administers the fund free of charge, so 100 percent of donations go directly to those who need it. Donations are collected for each case until it is fully funded. Since the partnership started, more than $500,000 has been raised for families in need.

Any donations received above the amount needed will benefit other, underfunded cases.

Donations can be given at https://www.uwwesternct.org/thegivingfund. Checks can also be mailed to The Giving Fund, P.O. Box 1001, Danbury, CT 06813.

This week’s six cases:

Case #113: Although Cami and her two children arrived in a shelter several months ago, her young daughters continue to make it to school every day.

As a result of their hardships, the girls are working through a delayed speech pattern with their school and Cami has seen great improvements over the past several months.

The family is ready to transition out of the shelter, but they are struggling to afford a security deposit. A gift of $1,500 would help this young family find a home of their own.

Case #114: is Julia’s case.

Case #115: Longtime teacher Annie was diagnosed with a gynecologic cancer this year and has since undergone chemotherapy and surgery.

Annie, who is in her 60s, had to leave her job due to the side effects of the treatment — despite the financial hardship she knew it would mean. Even though the chemotherapy has ended, she is still healing from the other illnesses that arose from the treatment.

A gift of $1,200 would help Annie pay for her quarterly real estate taxes while she continues to recover.

Case #116: Pamela and her 12-year-old daughter have been able to find a safe, affordable place to live after years of mental and physical abuse from Pamela’s ex-husband.

But Pamela’s daughter lost several teeth due to the violence and is in need of expensive dental work to repair her smile.

She is very self conscious about her appearance, especially at an impressionable age, but the dentistry is more than they can afford.

A gift of $1,500 would help cover the cost to begin the dental repair and give Pamela’s daughter her self-esteem back.